Teardrops of Glory
by RanmasaotomeAkane anime
Summary: What's this? Could it be that it isn't the end of the story? Misoka finds the scripts that tell of the Legendary Teardrops. But is it worth the risk?
1. Chapter 1

_Ultra Special Note #1!hey, people! This is my first fanfic ever, so I'm hopin' it will turn out good... if it doesn't, please don't hurt me, I'm only thirteen, I'm not ready to die yet..._ Don't listen to her, this is a really cool story and you have no reason whatsoever to kill her. This is her beta-reader, and please read and review 4 her, 'kay?

_Sometimes…I feel helplessly alone. Totally lost, in a world that just doesn't seem to care about me. Trapped in some sort of void, in which I'm stuck forever…_

"Morning, Mitsuru! Time to get up!" Akira pulled open the blinds.

"Waah!" Mitsuru whipped the covers off of his head, glaring at the young werewolf, who seemed way too happy, in his opinion. "Ever heard of knocking? It's what you do with your hands when the door's closed."

Akira looked at him with wide eyes. "But your door wasn't closed. Anyway, Misoka wants everyone downstairs to talk to them. Says it's important. So hurry up!" He bounced on the bedcovers.

"Do you mind! Maybe you didn't get my point-GET OUT OF MY ROOM!"

Akira barely escaped with his life, due to large pillows and heavy objects being thrown after him to accompany him on his way out.

Slamming the door closed, Mitsuru sank slowly down to the floor, leaned against the heavy, solid oak door, and sighed. Closing his eyes, he tried to remember his dream… something about being lost, he was sure of that… and water. Yuck. He despised it, loathed it with every ounce of his tengu being. It seemed so harmless, and yet… it could swallow you up in an instant. Make you disappear forever. Suddenly, his brown eyes flashed open, reflecting his clasped hands that were resting between his knees. Yes, that was it…hands. Lots of them, reaching out for him. But there was a form…he could only see the outline; he was sure it was a person…a form… He shut his eyes, trying to recall the facts that were dripping away through the cracks of his memory. Why was it so hard to remember a dream that he had been having since the supposed "Moonlight Bandits" had found the last Teardrop! Thinking furiously, he began to remember…

"Mitsuru? Get down here, or Misoka's gonna blow!"

He yanked open the door, cursing Nozomu with every step he took towards the meeting below.

"This may be a bit of a shock to you all, but…we have a problem with the Teardrops of the Moon."

Akira's mouth dropped open. "Whaaat! Were they stolen!" he turned to Mitsuru. "They were stolen, Mitsuru! Isn't that AWFUL!"

"No, the ones we found were-and still are-in perfect condition," said Misoka, trying his best to ignore the fact that Akira was shaking Mitsuru by the shoulders ("They were STOLEN!" "Get off me, you lunatic!").

Akira stopped his innocent abusing of Mitsuru's private space and stared. "Eh!"

"Then I don't see a problem," said Nozomu, leaning against a wall, looking at Misoka with a confused expression.

"Me, either. Time to go!" Mitsuru started out of the room.

"Stay." Misoka looked at him. "This is serious."

"But you just told us there was a problem, and then you say everything's fine…" Akira tilted his head to the side, his eyes wide and curious.

"Yeah, the only thin that seems to be serious right now is the fact that you're losing your mind," Mitsuru smirked, settling himself comfortably against the wall.

"Just listen to him, will ya!" Nozomu glared dangerously at the tengu. Akira's wolf ears lowered in shame, and he sniffed unhappily.

"It appears that all of the Teardrops that are proven to exist are found, that's true, but… we have received information that there are another set of Teardrops that contain fierce and legendary power." Misoka began to pace the room, being carefully watched by Nozomu.

"What!" Akira and Nozomu stared at him, apparently lost for words.

"…And who told you that load of junk? Why the heck would there be other jewels or whatever if they've never been heard about before? You're crazy, man. If you've been smoking something…"

"Mitsuru!"

The tengu jumped; he had practically forgotten that Mahiru had been called to the meeting as well. Darn it-why couldn't she not interfere for once!

"That was mean, especially after all Misoka's done for finding the first set of Teardrops…besides, he could be right. Just because you haven't heard of it doesn't mean it couldn't exist."

"I-we-you-ahh…!" Mitsuru had been about to speak his mind, decided against it, and turned tail to run before he exploded.

"Ooh, he got told! Did you see the blush on his face?" Nozomu laughed evilly. Within the next few seconds, he ran for his life as a wine glass went sailing past his face.

"Wanna say that to my face, bat boy!"

"Now, now…I know you were shocked to have your girlfriend disagree with you, but-"

"She's NOT my girlfriend-"

"Come on, we all know that-"

"You're asking for it, punk!"

"Let's go somewhere a bit quieter, hmm?" Misoka stood up, motioned Akira and Mahiru to follow, and headed for the most peaceful area in the house- his bedroom. Even though it was located on the other side of the building, he still had to close his door because of the racket downstairs.

"Now, let's see…" Misoka reached out for a book on his shelf and turned to his expecting audience.

"I got a book from the library about the Teardrops of the Moon, and from my calculations (not to mention information from the great Oboro-san), there are at least seven Teardrops that have never been found."

Akira's ears and tail appeared, along with a confused expression and a sidelong glance at Mahiru. "Then how do we know that they're actually there if they've never been found…?"

Misoka flipped through the book, and rested his finger on a page. "Legend has it that there were separate Teardrops the Princess of the Left gave the Demon as a token of love, and he buried them safely away throughout the earth. So when he died, the legend became what it is today-pure myth."

"But even some fairytales have a bit of truth in them, right?" Mahiru sat up on Misoka's bed, clutching one of his pillows and gazing intently at him.

"Exactly, Princess. Which is why we are going to find the legendary teardrops, and prove the legends true." He looked at both of them, closing the book firmly between his fingertips. "I'll look more of it up later, but that's it for now. I just thought that you all might like to be filled in on the subject…" he stood up to place the book on the shelf again.

"D'ya want me to tell the others?" Akira started for the door.

"No. I'll tell them later, when they aren't acting like idiots."

They left, the meeting finally being adjourned until another day.

"Let me get this straight. Ya mean to tell me that we're going to look for something that may or may not exist, and turn all of Japan over looking for something that we have no clue where the heck it is!" Mitsuru leaned against the refrigerator, his feet beginning to get cold n the hard, linoleum floor.

"Yup!" Akira happily poured milk in his cereal, and pulled his traditionally slightly-gold toast out of the toaster.

"You're insane. He's insane. I'm living with a bunch of lunatics!" He pulled some leftover curried rice from the fridge and heated it up in the microwave.

"I think that the actual problem is that you like things to be pure, solid fact and dislike it when something unusual turns up. Am I right?" Nozomu looked up from the tiny radio he was tinkering with to examine his reaction.

"Hmmph."

Nozomu turned back to his work, taking a swig of tomato juice. Sometimes, Mitsuru was just so predictable.

"What's so funny!"Mitsuru snarled, looking at the grin that was slowly appearing on the vampire's face.

"Hmm? Oh, nothing…"

Mitsuru decided to give it up. You just couldn't pick a fight on an empty stomach…

"Hey, Mitsuru?"

"What, bat boy."

"Sometimes the hardest thing is telling the truth and riskin' everything you've got, ya know?"

Now where the heck did that come from? Mitsuru opened his mouth to tell him so…

"GOOD MORNING!" Mahiru's cheerful face appeared in the doorway, to be accompanied by an equally cheerful pair of pajamas.

Ugh. How can she be so darn cheerful? It must be against the law. Or something. "Morning, loser."

Almost immediately he was hit from behind by Nozomu, causing his face to be magnetically attracted to his rice bowl.

"Owww…"

"Good morning, princess."

"Morning! Let's play a game, Mahiru! Let's play a game!"

"Maybe later, Akira; I have school today…"

Maybe if he just suffocated in his rice bowl and died no one would notice. Heck, who would care? One more of everybody's worries gone…

"Erm, Mitsuru?"

"Woit." (What)

"Why's your face in your rice bowl?"

Man, he couldn't stand happy-go-lucky, carefree werewolves, either. Just the sight of one in a good mood, it could make you do things you never thought possible.

Nozomu seemed t sense unease rising from the face in the bowl. "Let's go set up the kitchen for customers, Akira!"

"Then we can play a game!"

"Sure. Time for school, Mahiru! It starts in twenty minutes!"

"Thanks, Nozomu! Have a good day, everyone!"

Don't you need to chang-"

"Already did! Gotta go, or I'll miss the train!"

"Okay…you do that."

Within the next few seconds, the kitchen was evacuated.

Oh, thank goodness for silence. Mitsuru had always thought it was a useful thing to have around…

Mahiru rushed into school just before the bell rang, and took her seat at the toll of the last bell.

"Hey, Duckie!"

She turned around to come face to face with her best friend Junko.

"Hi! It feels like I haven't been in school for days!"

"I know, but it was only Sunday yesterday. A bit late this morning, huh?" Junko raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah, sorry…I left a bit late…" Mahiru fished her homework out from her bag.

"Were you with your boyfriend again?"

"Huh?" She stared at her. Boyfriend? She didn't…

"Yeah… that guy we met on the school fieldtrip with that cool green hair and those brown, serious eyes?" Junko looked like she was laughing.

"I've told you before! He's not my boyfriend, we're just friends!"

"Uh huh. So what's that blush on you cheeks for, eh?" She tried not to smirk triumphantly, but was having a bit of a hard time.

Mahiru sighed and leaned against the back of her chair. She had tried to explain her relationship to the tengu boy many times now, but…all she seemed to do was brush off her explanations like they were nothing.

"Miss Shirashi?" The teacher peered out from behind his immense role book.

"Yes, sir?" Mahiru looked up, suddenly aware of all the eyes on her.

"Good. You're alive. Maybe next time you'll have the courtesy to grace us with a simple 'here!' when your name is called on the first time, not on the fourth."

"Y-yes, sir." Sinking back in her chair with embarrassment, she tried to fight the red rising in her cheeks.

"Next time, it will be a detention slip for drifting off in class. Do you understand?"

She sighed inwardly. "I understand, senpai."

As he continued down the list, Junko whispered in her ear, "Sorry, Duckie. Didn't mean to get you in trouble."

"It's all right…" she gazed out the window, far away in a world that did not include geometry, English, science, or teachers calling your name. Thank goodness.

"Psst-Nozomu!"

"What, Akira?"

"Do you think Mitsuru is upset right now?" he was low to the countertop, automatically the suspect of guilt.

"Hmm. I don't know what about…besides the ridiculing, object-throwing, yelling, and the face-smashing, there's nothing to be upset about." Nozomu continued to dry the plate Akira had handed him moments before.

"Yeah…it's probably nothing. Just seems like he's sorta-"

"-Down?"

"Yeah! Exactly! Could he be mad at Misoka?"

"But what about?" They looked at each other.

"Nah!"

Geez, Misoka made him so made. Furious. Completely enraged. Totally incensed. But…he didn't know why. Mitsuru absent-mindedly wrote down the orders of his customers and trailed off to the kitchens when they finished babbling their nonsense. The fox never jumped headfirst into something when they couldn't see where the bottom was. So…why now? He passed the list off to Akira, and went back to his private corner to think things over. He remembered Misoka saying he was ill…but that was cured when they found the Teardrops wasn't it? Nothing made sense right now. And man, did that make him confused and irritable. He watched Misoka from behind a table, polishing the glass so well, he polished the label right off. Something wasn't right. He didn't know how it wasn't, but he could feel it. This wasn't going to be an easy mission. Heck, they didn't even know where to start!

"God, this is stupid,"Mitsuru muttered.

"Did you say something?" Akira tilted his head to look at him while gracefully keeping the fish that was in the pan he was holding…well, inside.

"No…"

"Are you sure you don't want to talk? Are you upset?"

"I'm fine. Leave me alone."

"Sorry!"Akira frowned, and turned back to his fish.

_There are times when I wish I had never been born, and yet…I also wish I had the choice to be someone else. Anyone else. If only that was possible. But it's not. Not for me. If it was, everyone would leave me alone._

_Continuation of #1:) Hope you liked it! Please review!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Ultra Special Note #2: Konnichiwa! Hiya! Here's the next little chapter of my fic. Well, I guess it's not so little… but at least it only took one day to update! It helps when you already have it written up…But anyways, hope you enjoy! Sayonara!_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Crescent Moon. Just the plot, this story, the wacky things they say…basically, everything else. You know what I mean! Hopefully, anyway. Sorry; I forgot to put a disclaimer in my first chapter! Gomen!_

_**Warning:** There may be a few bad words in here, but what do you expect? It's Mitsuru!_

Chapter 2: Hidden Dreams

It was raining when Mahiru was finally released from the prison "sensible" grownups called school. She sighed, putting her bag over her head and rushing around puddles of mud and "heaven's tears". _At least I live too far to have to walk,_ she thought, watching girls squealing and running for cover to avoid ruining their precious hairstyles and ribbons. With a few more steps, she was entering the train station's doors and inserting her ticket into the machine's slotted opening. With a loud click, both her ticket and a blast of air were expelled from the machine, and she continued on towards her train. As she took a seat next to a window, her thoughts fell in torrents and small slivers, like the rain pounding on the foggy glass. Mahiru sighed; Mitsuru had become so distant lately…she stopped, frowning. What did that mean! He was always distant! Yep, her thoughts definitely weren't making sense. _But…I know what I mean, right?_ thought the princess. _It almost feels like he's not telling us something…hiding something because it seems so strange._ Her head tilted towards the cold window. _I don't know…I just need to sleep…Just a little while…_

"Miss?"

"Urgh…hmm?" Mahiru woke up groggily.

"This's your stop, ain't it? I seen you get off 'ere befer…" A kindly looking man pointed to the overhead sign that read, 'Old town; Moon's Reach…'

"Oh, yes! Thank you!" She rushed towards the doors when…

_**DOORS CLOSING! PLEASE STEP BACK FROM THE DOORS…DOORS CLOSING! PLEASE…**_

"Nooooooo!" Lunging for the door, she just barely made it through…rrriippp. "Oh no…Why now!" Her books spilled from her bag, spewing their covers into the mud. A shadow fell over her…A hand reached down…

"Are you always this lame when ya get outta school? Have to have an old man remind ya where to get off? You're an idiot." Mitsuru leaned over and picked up a few books.

"M-mitsuru? Why did you come to pick me up?"

"Well…" he paused, thinking about the suffering he had to go through…

"Hey, Mitsuru! Go pick Mahiru up from the station, will ya?"

"I don't wanna. You go, bat-boy, if you're worried…"

"How's about we play a game to decide? Let's play Pick Up Sticks!"

"Huh?"

"Number three has to go pick up Mahiru!" Akira placed them in a can. "Nozomu, you choose!"

He selected a stick. "Number two!"

Akira grabbed one as well. "Number one!"

They slowly grinned at Mitsuru.

"I told you, I don't wanna…"

"Get out the door! Now!" He was escorted out the door by Nozomu's shoe. "You better pick her up, or else!"

And with that, Mitsuru was turned loose on the streets of Tokyo.

"Well?"

"Eh?"

"How come you came to-"

"I was brutally abused and locked out of the house."

"Eh?" She stared.

"Come on, let's go!" he started walking down the street, not even caring to see if Mahiru was there.

"O-okay…" Mahiru followed behind the tengu, leaving her bad day behind and letting her imagination figure out exactly why he came to get her. For some reason, she didn't think it was the situation he said it was…

"Princess, may I have a word?" Misoka stood in her bedroom doorway, watching her pencil skate across the paper.

"Sure!" Mahiru stood up, carefully arranged her schoolwork, and went over to Misoka curiously.

"Just a couple of quick notes," the fox said, straightening his glasses from their precarious position on his nose. "I was wondering if you could possibly look up the legendary Teardrops at your school library. For some reason, all the books that were in the public library on the subject are…gone."

"Oh! That's strange!" Mahiru looked nervously at Misoka. "Are you sure they weren't just checked out?"

"Quite. It is essential that we find at least one solid fact about the matter…"

"Why?"

"Mitsuru won't come to his senses without it. Besides, he needs to submit and be brought down a notch. I don't appreciate his attitude lately. Second matter of business. I just wanted you to know that it's all right to make sacrifices for people sometimes, but you should take some time off for yourself. You've done a lot for this group, which I greatly appreciate, but I'm afraid it's caused you to neglect your school friends a bit more than you used to."

"Oh! I see…"

"It wouldn't be considered selfish if you just spent a day with them. I'm sure everyone would be fine with that."

"Thank you very much, Misoka." She bowed slightly. "I'll try to find something, but I don't know if they're still in the library."

"All right. That's all. Thank you, Princess." And he was gone.

"Ahhh…" Mahiru sat in her small, wooden desk' chair and sighed. She had been so close to getting Mitsuru to be a little more outgoing, but…for some reason, he had holed himself up again, back in his own little world. Couldn't he possibly not be angry and hateful for once! Geez; it couldn't hurt, could it? Then again, it would probably put everyone in shock…and it would be ALL HER FAULT for suggesting he be nice. _Man, my life has gone from normal to crazy,_ she thought miserably. _Who else got yelled at for being nice!_

Akira loved rainy days. He had always been thrilled to see the world look so different at the cost of a few raindrops. Besides, they made rainbows, right? Those were so awesomely amazing! Unfortunately, Mitsuru didn't seem to feel the same right now…

"God, why does it has to rain on today, of all the days of the week!"

"Why? You were going to go somewhere for once?" Nozomu looked surprised. "Wow, I never would have thought…"

"Shut it, bat-boy."

"Are you I a bad mood?" mitsuru looked up in time to see Akira's chocolate eyes peer at him curiously. Couldn't he possibly not look so innocent all the time? One of these days…

"Of course not! I'm fine!"

"Uh huh. Did Mahiru diss you again? You haven't been up to scratch lately on your put-downs…"

"_I'm going to hurt you…_"

"That's the spirit! Now go to bed and think about what you just said, young man."

Mitsuru stared at him. That totally did not make sense. He contradicted himself in the same sentence… "Huh?"

"Exactly!"

"I'm going to bed…confused…tired…" muttered Mitsuru and he staggered up to his room. Meanwhile, Akira had fallen asleep.

"Hey, Akira!" Nozomu whispered.

"Hmmm?"

"Wake up; it's time to go to bed."

"Oh! Okay…" it wasn't until he got to his room that he realized what the vampire had said. "NOZOMUUU! YOU'RE MEAN!" he slammed his door shut.

"Just helping everyone get to bed…" Nozomu whistled quietly as he picked up the remaining items at the bar: a scarf, some money ("Ooh! I'll keep this!"), and a book that was called The Legends of Ancient Times. What!

"Eh!" he stared. Nozomu whizzed through the book, looking for a name or address or telephone number ("Wait! There wouldn't be a telephone number! How lame can ya get!"), but there was noting but the writings in the pages.

"I think I'll keep this, as well. This could prove quite interesting…" he slipped it into his pocket, and turned out the lights…until midnight snack. Right now, he had something to do…

"So, do you think it means anything? Is it any help?"

"It will be. Thanks. Where'd you find it?"

"Just on the bar counter. Somebody left it behind." Nozomu leaned against the door. "It must not have been that impor-" His speech was cut off as the door opened and he fell out of sight.

"Do you guys mind shutting your traps? We're tryin' to…sleep…" Mitsuru looked down at Nozomu, whose eyes were crossed. "Don't ell me you were leaning against the door!" _I swear, Akira must really be affecting him…_

"Thank you! I'm fine, really I am! Thanks for your concern!" Nozomu got up shakily, a bright smile pasted on his face. "Now…we were having a conversation, Mitsuru. So…GET OUT!"

For the first time in his life, Mitsuru actually had to run for his life. Nozomu slammed the door shut. "Now…where were we?" Nozomu safely sat in a chair.

"You said it may not have been important since its owner carelessly left it behind, and perhaps that is true. Unfortunately, the owner may come back for his property, and we will have to return it.

"But we found it! It should be ours!"

"How true…but it's not." Misoka pocketed it carefully, and moved towards the door. "I'll think about it tonight. Reading through it should not take long, so if I find anything I'll let everyone know in the morning. Goodnight, Nozomu."

"'night…" Nozomu watched the door close to his room and groaned. Foxes were too smart for their own good…

_It was cold. Darkness enveloped the young boy, who felt blind. He couldn't see his fingertips. Snow was falling. A friend's voice cried his name…suddenly, it felt so warm and peaceful. As he closed his eyes, he knew that he was no longer lost or alone._

Mitsuru woke up, sweating slightly. It was the same dream, only… there was no voice to save him; no form to protect him. Nothing. And he was sure…he had passed out. Maybe even died in the dream. And the strange thing was…it was the only time that his realistic nightmare had reached another ending. For some reason, it frightened him. He didn't know why, but-wait. There was something in his room. Near the door. He could hear it breathing. Mitsuru tensed; he began to transform…

"Mitsuru!"

"AAARRRGGH!" he jumped out of bed. "How the heck did you get in my friggin' room, Mahiru!" he was totally enraged. No one had dared to step in his room unbidden before. Even if it was Mahiru, it could not be allowed to happen again! "Get out!" he hissed.

"All I want to do is ask you something…"

"You can ask... from outside my room! Get out!" heck, he didn't even have a shirt on! Curse girls, you can't even trust 'em to come up with something at the right time! She still didn't answer how she had gotten into his room…

"Please!" Mahiru begged.

"Nooo! Go away!" he batted at her with a hand while slipping on a shirt and trying to get it on correctly.

"No! I won't!" She glared in his direction. "So many times you tell me to 'go away' or 'get lost', and I do. Then I don't to ask you what I was going to!"

He stared at her. Maybe he should just go back under the covers and hide until morning. He wasn't prepared to face anybody more determined than he was at the morning. He looked at this clock and started. "Do you even know what time it is!"

"Yes! Its 12:07, but it was really important…"

"Yeah, it better be, or else…" he folded his arms and waited.

"…Can I turn a light on?"

"No, dammit. I will never forgive you if you do."

"Why/ Do you look that awful?"

"Hey…" Mitsuru automatically brushed at his hair.

"Fine. Are you hiding something from us?"

God, she caught on fast. "Eh?"

"Well!" she looked at him. "I know last time you were extremely mad when I hid something from the group, and if you're hiding it because you think it's absurd, then you're wrong. It would probably help us out…"

Mitsuru was silent for a moment.

"Mitsuru?"

"Just…go. I need to think, okay? I'd tell you if it wasn't serious, but…no. Just...leave. Okay, Mahiru?"

She stared.

"What!"

"You called me by my name again; you said please, too!"

"Oh…get lost." He pushed her out the door, and made sure it was locked. She was onto him. Definitely onto him. Mahiru would make sure his little bit of info sooner or later. Because she had before, and it had cost him every little bit of is dignity. But this time…he curled back in bed. This time, he'd lie if it was necessary. How could dreams like that help anything but get you to an asylum faster?

Mahiru stood outside the tengu's door, thinking calmly but thoughtfully. It would be harder now, as he would try to avoid her, but she'd get him. He had to tell sometime. Besides, it couldn't be anything bad, could it? She padded down the darkened hallway and snuggled into bed. Yes, that was it…just thin about it in the morning. Mahiru drifted off into her own luxurious world of dreams.

Mitsuru woke up slowly, as it was custom for him to do every day. His vision was slightly blurry. Must have something in his eye…brown. Hair, eyes…something glinted in the sunlight. Earrings. What the…

"AKIRA!"

"Morning! We have to go!" he bounced on top of the tengu's bed.

"How'd you get into my ROOM!" mitsuru howled.

"Have to go!"

"Get lost, spot!"

"Go!" he tugged on Mitsuru's arm.

"Where, you blathering idiot!"

"School!"

Mitsuru stopped. He didn't go to school…not recently…"Huh?"

"We're going to raid the library to look for info on the Legendary Teardrops!"

The tengu groaned. Not again…he'd had enough of them yesterday…and for the rest of his life, for that matter.

"We know the author! We're gonna look him up! Nozomu found a book on it yesterday…"

"What!" he felt his resolve being ripped apart. "Then they do exist?"

"Yep! Misoka wasn't smoking after all!"

"I'll just stay here…I don't feel well…" Mitsuru turned over, away from the light and Akira's dangerously pleased features.

"Whaaaat? Are you sick? Can I help?" Akira looked worried.

"Yeah, I'm I'll. No, ya can't help with anything." He stopped.

"No?"

"Well…tell Misoka I can't come. Stomachache." Yeah, it sounded lame, so maybe he wouldn't buy-

"Oh! Okay!" he bounded off on his mission.

_Werewolves are too darn trusting. I don't wonder why there aren't many left._ He smirked; then it faded. _I do wonder if that's why there are even less of us…_

"What? He said he can't come?" Nozomu looked scandalous.

"He's sick. Doesn't feel well, supposedly," said Akira from the floor.

"He's lying! He just doesn't want to be proven wrong!" the vampire sprang up from his seat, and began to pace. "What a coward! Mitsuru can be so lame-"

"I think he just wants to avoid me," said Mahiru, examining her school uniform in the mirror and putting on her coat.

"Eh!" Akira frowned. "Why's that? I think that mitsuru is just plain irritated."

"Well…I think…never mind. I'll tell you when it's all right to do so." Mahiru smiled slightly. "Goodbye! See you all at lunchtime!" She started to leave.

"Twelve 'o clock, Princess. Remember that."

"I will, Misoka!" Mahiru took off down the lane, making cars beeped tier horns in anger.

Misoka shut the door. "He's hiding something."

"Come again?" said Nozomu, who was absent-mindedly fiddling with a button on his jacket.

"It may not be serious, but…I'm sure it would help us in our search. Mitsuru…is best left alone right now. If we act like nothing's wrong, we can get it out of him somehow." He began to pace the room, having to step over Akira, who was reading a cooking magazine.

"So do we just leave him here and not drag him off with us?"

"Yes. It'll be safer for all of us if we do (in more ways than one)."

"I totally agree! Let's just forget it for now, all right? It may not be anything special at all, and all our worrying will have been over nothing." Akira spoke wisely and slowly as he began to read How to Create Pineapple Bread in Ten Easy Steps.

"I couldn't have said it better myself."Nozomu grinned. "Let's just have breakfast and go, okay? We've already wasted enough time…"

With a few pieces of toast, omlettes, and juice for Nozomu, the trio set out to find the most information they could about the oldest treasure in Japan.

Mitsuru watched them leave, and made his way downstairs. All he wanted was time alone, and to solve his moodiness. He opened the cupboard doors in the kitchen, taking out a box of rice. He opened Akira's recipe book and turned to page 72: Curried Rice. Glancing at it, he prepared his breakfast. At least rice could solve one of those things.

_Ultra Special Note: Hope ya liked it! I know it might now seem like it's moving anywhere, but it is! It is! So don't go away, we'll be right back! Please review!_


	3. Chapter 3

_Ultra Special Note #3: And we're back, people! I hope you have enjoyed this so far, 'cause there's plenty more where this came from. My birthday was yesterday (on the 7th), and while we were celebrating my fourteenth, I thought, 'well, why not start a Ranma ½ fanfic about someone's birthday?' So be on the lookout, 'kay? And here's chappie three!_

_Disclaimer: Even if I desperately wanted to, I still wouldn't own Crescent moon, so don't ask, okay?_

_**Warning:** Bad words ahead, but not many…at least I think so…_

_Chapter 3:_

Books. Rows upon rows of written records. Thousands of pages that were a gateway to an unknown world. The wolf put his hands deep into his militia pants-pockets, and looked, for what seemed like miles, all the way up the shelf, scanning the titles for any sign of legends. Too bad none of the titles seemed to hold a gateway into the world of Teardrops…

"Hey, Akira!" Nozomu walked over next to him and stared up at the shelves.

"Eh?"

"Found any thing yet? I can't seem to find anything…"

"Me, either. I've checked this section a thousand times over, but there isn't anything on our subject!" He lowered his ears in frustration. Nozomu clapped his hands over Akira's exceptionally large wolf ears.

"Put those away…it's just not…normal, ya know?"

Akira whined in disappointment, and began to sort out the titles by genre. "There's nothing here, I'm telling you…"

"Hmmm…want me to help you pretend to look for something? I'm sure he won't notice!" He looked over his shoulder at Misoka, who was absorbed in his studies.

"Sure! We've been looking too hard, anyway…"

About five minutes later, the fox came over. "May I ask what you're doing?"

"We're looking for a book!" Akira put on a wide grin.

"Uh huh. Then tell me why you haven't moved from you're spot for five minutes?" Misoka put his hands in his sweatshirt pockets, looking up at them.

"_He's onto us,"_ Nozomu whispered to Akira.

"What?" Misoka looked at him suspiciously.

"Er-I said there were a lot of books in this area to check, ya know? Ha ha…ha." The vampire scratched at the back of his head nervously.

"Whatever. If you're not interested in this project, I'll accomplish it alone. I'm perfectly fine with that."

"No! We've just looked over this a billion times, that's all." Akira looked flustered.

"Well, there are a lot more shelves to check. I suppose I should have told you that I already took all the books from this row."

"Eh! And you just let us look!" Nozomu stared.

"Well, you never bothered to check in with me…" Misoka walked back to is table, which was littered with literature.

"Umm…Akira? Does he ever make you feel **really** stupid?"

"Yep. And right now is one of those times…" The flustered teens made their way back to the table, feeling like the fox had outsmarted them once again.

After a delicious dinner of baked shrimp and lobster (prepared by master chef, Akira), Misoka called the group to a meeting once again.

"Now that we have _finally_ found some basic information from which to start searching, with or _without _help-" Nozomu and Akira gulped-"we can finalize our results to create a plan from which to proceed-"

"Can you repeat that in English?" Akira wondered.

"Take a few moments to calm down-breathe in, breathe out-'cause for some reason you always start using weird vocabulary after reading a few books," Nozomu said patiently, looking at the fox demon across the kitchen table.

"We have enough facts to create a map from which to start looking for the Legendary Teardrops ("Ooh! I thought that's what you said!" Akira beamed). They seem to be down in southern Japan, perhaps even in the mountains."

"Are we gonna go camping!" said Akira curiously.

"Hell no!...Right?" Mitsuru glanced at Misoka.

"We'll see…" the fox's features weren't distinguishable in the light produced from the fireplace, but his tone was uneasy. "We may have to split up to look more carefully, but…we'll have to see." He pointed to a pile of notes sitting in front of him. "These notes contain historically proven facts and a poem that holds a riddle inside of it (most likely). Many of the Legendaries have been found in the past-"

"What did I tell you! A bunch of riddles that'll lead you from one place to another! It's a load of-"

"Sit down and shut up." Misoka had finally lost his patience. "How can I tell you _anything_ if you refuse to let me speak? You never believe anything unless it bites you in the nose! Try having a bit of imagination and a positive mindset, for once! If you want to go and leave you to this 'nonsense' you are quite welcome to, Mitsuru! But I will not tolerate it while I am here and listening!" He glared at the tengu with distaste.

Mahiru stared. "Wowww…"_ Misoka must have been furious, since he's never lost his temper while I've been here (except for when he thought I was hiding something)…_

Mitsuru slid down in his chair and sat there in his chair, silently sulking.

"Now…as I was saying…" Misoka scanned his notes, stood up with his hands in his pockets, and began pacing the room. Akira and Nozomu regarded the fox warily through their wide eyes. "The Legendaries have been spotted within the last 500 years and thankfully the people were smart enough to write down their findings…but they never touched them." He flipped through a couple a pages. "In fact, in all of the journals…that seems to be the last entry. Finding the teardrops. So strange…"

"You said they were in the mountains, right? Maybe on their way back down, they got mauled by cougars or somethin'." Mitsuru traced circles on the tabletop with his fingers.

"Such cheerful thinking," Nozomu noted dryly.

"Maybe they just didn't feel like writing anything else!" Akira looked hopeful.

"Yeah! Or they had another journal to write in!" guessed Mahiru.

"Possible, but…no. I don't think so." Misoka laid out an old, yellow-looking article and read it aloud. " 'Four Archeologists Gone Missing!'" There was silence.

"Or maybe they just went insane, or felt like ditching the country," Mitsuru spoke quickly, to fill in the silence. He laughed nervously. For some reason, that made him afraid.

"I think that's enough info for one night!" Nozomu stood up and clapped his hands together. "Especially when we're about to go to bed…"

"Yes! Think happy thoughts!" Akira pushed Mahiru and Mitsuru up the stairs ahead of him, turning on every light as he went.

"Maybe right now isn't the best time to share such joyful thoughts, hmm? Let's try the morning, when it's nice and sunny and bright." Nozomu grinned.

"I just thought that they'd like to be updated, you know…" Misoka began picking up his papers, placing them in a precise order.

"Yeah, I know what ya mean. And you'd think that werewolves and tengus wouldn't be frightened…"

"It's not a pleasant thing to think about, is it?" He went and stood in front of the fire.

"We all just need to go to bed and wind down a bit; take a break." Nozomu headed for the door.

"I suppose…"

"You too, Misoka. You'll need it the most of all of us." He smiled, and headed for his room.

"Indeed…" the fox squatted down, snuffed out the fire, and made his way upstairs in the dark.

"Hey, Mitsuru?"

"What?" he had expected her to nose into his business again. Girls just seemed to like doing that.

"Are you sure what you're hiding is nothing?"

"I'm not hiding anything." He rolled over irritably, feeling guilt wash over him in waves. Stupid Princess. Was she a psychologist or something? Using reverse psychology just got him feeling harassed and irritable.

"Are you sure?" She raised her eyebrows.

Was he a criminal or something? Last time he checked, it was legal for him to avoid conversations…

"On you way out, shut the door, will ya? Thanks." He pulled the sheets over his head.

Mahiru smiled slightly. She couldn't help it. Closing the door, she whispered, "Mitsuru?"

"What now!"

"If you need to talk to someone…I'm ready to listen, okay? If you want, I'll be there for you."

"Hmmpf."

"Well…goodnight."

"'Night."

She closed the door, letting darkness flow around him once again, and headed down the hallway. Mitsuru didn't exactly know why, or what the reason was, but he felt comforted. He didn't feel alone. _Oh, snap out of it, you sappy idiot_, he thought, the happy blush still spreading like fire across his face. For the first time in months, Mitsuru fell into a deep and dreamless sleep, a slight smile transforming his features into a peaceful, gentle surface.

When Mitsuru woke up…his face hurt. And he had woken up extremely late. To put him in an even better mood, he felt happy. It wasn't a feeling that was native to his personality, but he had vague memories of what it was. And man, did that make him annoyed. He was perfectly content with his angry self, but…for some reason, it just didn't seem right to be cruel and nasty today, either. For the young tengu, it was one of those days where he had no clue of what he wanted to be. His solution to this problem: not saying a word until his personality sorted itself out. Noises were fine; just not actual human speech. This might five your confusion away.

**If you want to talk to someone, I'm ready to listen. I'll be there for you**.

He started for Mahiru's door, then stopped. Yeah, right. Since when did he…! Mitsuru started downstairs, passing Nozomu on the way.

"Hey, lightning rod! You're late this morning. Might just have to eat cereal; I don't know if Akira still has any of his dishes out."

"Mmmph."

"Okay, see you later!" He went upstairs. _What's his problem?_

As Mitsuru continued on his long, treacherous journey to the kitchen, a dark sphere whirled past him, and he heard the vampire yell, "Could you possibly be more careful! Especially with the mail, Mr. Bats! Explain yourself! What have you got say!"

SQUEAK! (YAY! I'M BACK!)

"You idiot!"

"Well, well, look who finally decided to show up for breakfast!" Akira looked cheerful, as always. He snuck a look at the clock. "Or, should I say, lunch. Would you like an omlette?"

"Hmmph."

"Eh? What's with you? Fox got your tongue today, too?"

Finally, Mitsuru decided on his personality: "Shut up."

"Ouch…" Akira handed him a plate of eggs, toast, and bacon. "Did you have a bad night's sleep?"

"You could say that…or just the opposite." He took his lunch out into the back stairway to torment the alleycats with his food.

"Huh?" the werewolf paused in his scrubbing of pots and pans. "He's weirder than usual today…too bad Mahiru isn't around. She probably knows a bit about what's going on with him…" Akira tapped a plate against his chin thoughtfully. "She's been terribly quiet lately…" The rest of his thoughts and mutterings went unheard by everyone that didn't have the last name of Akira Yamabuki as he finished his last bowl and went outside to take a walk. Unknowingly going by an observing Mitsuru, he headed for the nearest candy shop to empty his pockets of all the spending money he had. The observer groaned in a bored tone, and continued to finish off his toast and bacon. With curried rice, of course.

"Mind if I join you?" Mahiru appeared next to him, looked around, and sat down across from him.

"Doesn't look like I have a choice, does it?" he said dryly.

She didn't answer, and picked up the kitten mewing at her feet.

"What do you want? You obviously didn't come out here to sit and play with cats." Mitsuru glanced at her.

"I have a feeling that whatever you're hiding from us-"

"I'M NOT HIDING ANYTHING! IF YOU GUYS DON'T TRUST ME, THEN WHY DON'T YOU JUST KICK ME OUT OF THE HOUSE!"

"-is connected to our finding those Teardrops." She locked eyes with him. Mitsuru shifted uncomfortably, and glared at the nearest cat as if it were its fault he didn't have anything to say.

"Look, why won't you tell? Misoka needs to know…" she trailed off, looking at Mitsuru's face.

"And you really think that I'm in the mood to help him after the way he screamed at me last night? Next time you talk to me, try coming a little more prepared." He stood up. "Besides, you need counseling lessons. Have you ever heard of those? An idiot much? 'Cause that's what you sound like!"

"What! I do not! Mitsuru, you-"

The tengu ran off, smirking.

"-big loser! Jerk! Meanie!"

"Whatever dork!" He grinned in the dark hallway.

"Go away!" She stood up and stalked outside.

"What do ya think I did!"

Nozomu watched the commotion sadly from behind his door. And he thought that they were getting along so well… he could tell what kinda day this was gonna be. The vampire went to hide while he could. Maybe they'd be gone soon…

Mitsuru closed the door to his room, grinning. It was so easy to pick on Mahiru when she took what you were saying so seriously. Girls were so testy and emotional…

_He walked down a passageway, lined with lanterns that hung crookedly upon the walls. Footsteps were echoing behind him, but oddly, he wasn't afraid…The corridor opened into a cavern, lined with rocks and roots from the trees above it. A blue light rose up from the floor, making the walls behind it glow with an unearthly light. Inside, he knew, it was waiting for him…the treasure he had been looking for, watching for so long. He could sense it vibrating, calling out…he reached inside of the light, and someone yelled…it was him…A burning warmth spread up his arm, through his very being. Small, cold hands grabbed his shirt from behind as he was pulled into another realm…then the cold hit him._

Mitsuru woke up. Bright light filtered into his room through his windows. Must be afternoon. _Strange how I didn't even realize that I was asleep…_He needed to be in a crowded room. Yes, that was it. That way, he wouldn't look like a loser and fall asleep. Taking his sweatshirt downstairs with him, he entered the café. He could smell the drinks and hear the laughter from the hallway. Lazy bunch of people.

"Hey, come to help out, have you? Good. You can start by polishing the glasses, as long as you promise not to rub the label off." Akira laughed good-naturedly.

"Whatever, man."

"Hmm?" Akira looked at him over his teriyaki steak that he was grilling for the man at the back table.

"I won't rub off the labels. Now give me the darn wine glasses."

"Okey Dokey! Be careful!" he turned back to his cooking.

What was he having those dreams for? Mitsuru believed that dreams could be dangerous, and many of the ones he had were, but… what if it was a warning? He probably wouldn't know until it was too late…

"Psst."

"What, bat abuser."

"Huh! What'd ya mean by that?"

"I saw what you did to Mr. Bats."

"Oh…well your girlfriend says hi."

"Tell her to leave me alone. What'd you call Mahiru!"

"Heh. How'd you know I was talking about her? I swear…kids these days…"

"Grrr…" Mitsuru blushed, then got angry. "Why do you keep on me about that, anyway! You didn't before!"

"That's because I didn't know…"

"Well, let's pretend you still don't…or maybe I can arrange that for you…" He glared dangerously at Nozomu.

"No respect for their elders these days," Nozomu muttered.

"You're only two years my senior!"

"So? Still makes me older."

"Shut up."

"Hmm? Suddenly my ears quit working, can ya believe that! The nerve…" He grinned.

"Whatever, man."

"She also says that she'd like to be able to speak with you without you calling her an idiot." Nozomu clucked his tongue. "How awful…"

"Who says?"

"Your girlfriend…" He stopped, looking shocked at himself. "Oh no! I'm sorry! Whatever **shall** we do?"

"I know what I'll do if you don't get out of my sight in the next three seconds, man…" Mitsuru took a step towards the other teen.

"I'm leaving, man, I'm leaving," he said, backing out of the room with a tray prepared with hot and spicy foods. "Do me a favor and take a chill pill, okay?"

"**Go.**"

Nozomu gracefully exited the bar, acting as though he had not just confused Mitsuru to bits, and nothing had happened at all.

"Why did he come in here to ruin my day?" Mitsuru asked the wine glass clutched in his hands. In reply, it shattered into large, jagged pieces scattered all over the tile floor. "You too!"

"What was that?" Akira headed towards the sound.

"Nothing! Just go back to your little stove!" Mitsuru picked up the pieces, and just before he dumped them into the trash can, he froze. Then slowly, he placed them in his pocket. _They'll come in handy someday._ He continued to polish the rest of the glasses to perfection. _I don't know when or how, but I know certain…they will._


	4. Chapter 4

_Ultra Special Note #4: Hello again! I hope you've enjoyed it so far, and I just have to tell you that this chapter is very short, so don't yell at me! Thank you to the following people who have reviewed so far; I appreciated your remarks!_

_I'm so happy! Yesterday I put up two new chapters, I was totally going into hyper drive, and this time, it was a good thing!  Other than that, I think everything's okey-dokey okay! So let us begin again…Comments welcome!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Crescent Moon. I'm just a poor person who has been reduced to using their magnificent characters._

Chapter 4: On the Move!

It was a bleak, cloudy, and windy morning when Nozomu woke up. Just glancing outside from his soot-streaked window made him feel cold. And depressed. How strange; his week had been going well so far…The sleepy vampire rolled over to try and discern the time from his luminescent clock. Just nearing 7:00AM. Perfect. He checked his hair (there might actually be a few out of place, you know) and was downstairs in the next few minutes.

"Very good. You're right on time."

"Good morning, Misoka. I hope you slept well?"

"Now that you mention it…yes. I have to tell you a bit about our trip…"

Nozomu leaned against the wall, his hands shoved into his pockets.

"Trip?"

"Yes. Within the next few days, we'll be leaving for Kyoto by plane, since I've found out in what area the Teardrops may be." He pushed his glasses further away from the bridge of his nose and examined Nozomu's expression. "From there we will begin our search, using the Princess's gift (if she will allow it) to substantiate the lead. Then…we'll have to see where it leads us."

"I understand what you're saying." The young man nodded in agreement. "I'll think the most trouble we'll have is getting Mitsuru to come with us."

"It may be even harder to get him to realize that he has to work with us as a team."

"How true…" Nozomu smiled sadly, and thought quietly to himself.

"I was thinking that perhaps we should leave as soon as possible." Misoka placed his fingertips together and lowered them to the table.

"Why so?" He eyed Misoka with concern. "Misoka, if this is one of those things where you feel like you have to rush it because it may turn out to be a life or death situation…"

"No. it's not that."

"What, then?"

"I want to complete this as quickly as possible. Even though it didn't seem too bad when we found out about the Teardrops, I'm getting a feeling that this might be more than we bargained for."

"So you're saying it night be dangerous?"

"Most likely."

"Well, I'm sure that if we just left Mitsuru here, half the danger would be gone!" Nozomu laughed.

"This isn't funny," Misoka said, although a corner of his mouth lifted at the joke. "We have to keep our heads on and be focused. I've decided that we will leave tomorrow."

"What! You're not serious…"

"Everyone will receive a ticket in the morning so they don't lose it beforehand. We haven't taken a lot of action with our plans yet, so the time to act is now."

"Uh…okay." Nozomu stood up, stretching his arms legs. "Do you want me to tell the others or…?"

Wait until dinner. Best not get them riled up…"

"Over what?" Akira poked his head in the door, his puppy eyes half-closed with sleep.

"You'll find out later, my friend," laughed Nozomu. He patted him on the head. "You look awful. Maybe you should go to bed again."

"Sure thing," yawned Akira, and went back upstairs to go to sleep once more.

There was a peaceful kind of quiet in the room after that.

"That's all that I wanted to say." Misoka spoke after a moment, his voice filling in the silence.

"Alright. For once, I think I'll cook breakfast…" the vampire left the room, whistling cheerfully. Just meeting the werewolf had put him in a good mood. _It could be a nice day after all,_ he decided, striding purposefully down the hallway. The weather seemed to agree with him as well; the sun shone brightly through the few gray clouds left, and it seemed, to Nozomu at least, that it might become the most interesting and exciting dinner all week.

XXX

"WHAT!" Mitsuru stared at Misoka with wide, incredulous eyes as he hovered over his dinner of orange chicken and rice. "You're joking, right? There's no way I'm getting on that plane, man. I'd rather fly there myself! Why the heck are we going by plane!" He scowled, putting his hands in his pockets.

"Oooh, really? I've never been on a plane before…" Mahiru looked curiously at the tickets the fox grasped in his hands.

"'Cause you're scared of heights, you idiot." Mitsuru smirked.

"Meanie!" She stuck out her tongue, her cheeks a light pink. Turning back to Misoka, she frowned. "You never said when we were leaving…"

"The most reasonable time would be about 12 noon tomorrow…"

There was a moment of silence as everyone stared blankly at him.

"As in, the day after today?" Akira blinked.

"Yes, that is the definition of tomorrow, Akira." Nozomu grinned.

"I know that!" The werewolf's ears flattened slightly. "I just meant, isn't this a little bit late to tell us; springing it on us like this wasn't very considerate." Akira looked and forth at Nozomu and Misoka.

"Well…if we had told you earlier you would have been worrying all week. Right?" Nozomu glanced at him. Finally the information sunk into the rest of the group.

"HELL NO! NO, NO, NO WAY MAN! I'M NOT CROWDING INTO SOME PACKED PLANE, SITTING NEXT SOME KID THAT'LL WHINE AND COMPLAIN AND SAY, 'I want my mommy,' DAMMIT!" Mitsuru slammed his fist down on the table, making his spoon fly across it and land precariously on Misoka's nose. Mahiru giggled as Mitsuru froze and turned red. "Sorry," he muttered, looking down at his plate. "Don't expect me to go on that plane, man."

Misoka lifted the spoon off his nose and set it on the table. "That's quite alright, and we didn't expect you to get on. Which is why we'll have to take any measure necessary in order to get you in a seat, even if it means dragging you onto the plane in a straight jacket. And you won't be sitting next to children; that would be too dangerous for them."

"I'm not a criminal, dammit!"

Akira coughed slightly (it was a real cough, by the way) and looked at Misoka. "What are our seats?"

"I'll tell you tomorrow…" it might be better for all of us."

"I wanna know now! I don't want any more lame surprises-"

"Akira, would you…?"

"Okey-dokey!" Akira transformed into a large (but happy) werewolf that placed Mitsuru over his shoulder and headed to his room.

"Eh! Put me down, you furball!"

"You just down some sleep, Mitsuru."

"By the way, don't try to transform tengu-style, okay? We put some powder in your chicken." Nozomu whistled cheerfully.

"CURSE YOU-" The door slammed upstairs, and faint yelling and cheerful shouting filled the downstairs rooms.

"Don't worry, I don't think the seating is that bad," Misoka reassured Mahiru. "Besides, it's only an hour or so."

"Oh…okay." She thought for a moment. "Well, I'm going to go and pack a few things. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, princess." Misoka and Nozomu watched her leave. The vampire sighed.

"That was interesting. Hope tomorrow goes a bit better."

"I suppose the worst would be if Mitsuru throws a fuss in the middle of the airport…"

Nozomu nodded wisely. "Well, what do expect from little kids these days?"

Misoka smiled slightly. "I'm off to bed as well. Wake up everyone at nine, please. We have to be at the airport an hour early…"

"All right. 'Night, o fearless leader."

"'Night."

XXX

Mitsuru sat simmering in his chair, thinking of ways to get back at the extremely happy dog-man. What right did they have to forcefully drag him into is own room! He kicked the wall. Well, he wasn't going to lose any more of his dignity if he could help it. Stomping over and turning out the lights, he stopped to think. Misoka never had told him who he was sitting with. Probably thought he'd explode if he knew. The tengu shook his head, ruffling his aqua-colored hair. He'd only blow if he got paired with Akira or Mahiru. Mitsuru stared into empty space. Oh, god; no. Nooo way. He wouldn't have- he tried to open his door, but Akira had managed to lock his door from the outside. The tengu curled up under is covers. At least he could enjoy the rest of his good day. Or good night.

XXX

Nozomu woke up early, looking bleary-eyed and yawning. He had a feeling he was supposed to do something important…Had something happened that was…ooh. He checked the time: 9AM and 2 seconds.

"Aah! Nine o clock!" he raced down the hall. "I was supposed to wake up everyone.

"What are you yelling about?" Mahiru padded into the hallway, panda ears showing.

"Yeah, could you quiet down a little?" Akira looked out of his doorway, wrapping his bathrobe around him.

"SHADDUP! I'M TRYING TO SLEEP HERE!" Mitsuru banged on his door. "AND SOMEBODY OPEN THIS DOOR!"

"Oh, yeah!" Akira beamed. "I forgot…" he went to release the prisoner.

Nozomu sighed. "Well, I guess I _did_ wake everyone up…"

"What'd did you say? Sorry, I wasn't listening…" Mahiru looked peered at him over the pillow she held in her hands.

He frowned teasingly. "Doesn't anyone listen to me anymore?"

"I'm sorry!" Mahiru wailed. "I'm just so tired…"

"I was kidding; it was nothing."

"Oh, okay. I thought it was something important that you had to say…"

"Hey!"

Mitsuru listened as everyone laughed and dragged their bags of luggage downstairs, half wishing that someone would care enough to say, 'Hey, where's Mitsuru?' and try to convince him to come downstairs. _I've never been cared about. Why should this matter?_ He laughed bitterly. _By locking me in my own room, they showed how much they cared, alright. Just like on Akira's birthday…and when my parents left me alone…_

_**Just stop it Mitsuru.**_

_**Whatever, man. I get it now.**_

_**No! I won't move!**_

_**You say we're friend…we stick together. But when it comes down to it…**_

There was a knock on his door. "Mitsuru?" Mahiru poked her head in. "Aren't you coming? Somehow I knew you'd still be in here…"

"Well, that's great for you. I bet you feel really proud of yourself."

"Huh! Meanie!"

"Sure, man. Or little girl."

"Heyyy!"

"Just shut up and get out of my room!"

"Not until you leave, too! We'll leave together!"

"I'll call the cops for harassment."

"I thought you didn't trust anyone?"

"Trust them more than you." he pushed past her into the hallway, carrying his bag.

"Eh? Hmm…" The Princess followed him down the hall, humming softly.

_Maybe things would be better from now on, _he thought. _We're heading places, and one of a thousand prayers was answered. Perhaps…perhaps even though it was such a small (and stupid) wish…it just proved that dreams could…whatever._

"Let's go, Mahiru." Mitsuru pulled her along behind him, locking her hands with his.

"Ahh…okay, Mitsuru-chan!" her face lit up, and her light steps blended with his sure ones. He thought of saying something, but decided against it.

"Whatever." _Yes. This day just might be one of the ones…that will let me be who I am. Without the mask._

_Ultra Special Note: I'm sorry it was so short, but was it good? I hope more people will review and tell me how they feel about it, so I know if I need to change anything. Any ideas for future stories would be welcome too!_


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